But I digress… I’m here to tell you more about the transfer market in Official Fantasy Bundesliga. Just like the real-life transfer market, a player’s in-game value fluctuates according to his performances on a matchday. There are no prizes for guessing which players have become more expensive since last Friday, but there are others whose price has dropped - and who you might now be able to afford as a result.

About Matt: Official Fantasy Bundesliga Expert Matt has always been a bit of a numbers geek. As a kid he had a giant poster of Sesame Street’s The Count above his bed, while his current ringtone is Hip To Be Square by Huey Lewis and the News. Our resident number cruncher will provide you with key facts and stats throughout the season.

How deep are your pockets?

The good news is that no player’s value has increased by more than 0.2. The bad news? If you harbour hopes of signing the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Thomas Müller or Manuel Neuer (all now worth 15.2m), it’s becoming ever more difficult to do so.

The aforementioned quartet are among 23 players whose price has risen by 0.2 since Matchday 1. Lewandowski and Aubameyang scored five goals between them on Matchday 1, while Müller set up three of FC Bayern München’s six goals against SV Werder Bremen. Germany’s No1 goalkeeper Neuer kept his first clean sheet of the campaign in Friday’s 2016/17 season opener.

Anthony Modeste (14.2m), Andre Schürrle (13.2m), and Ricardo Rodriguez (12.2m) are also among the stars whose price has risen by 0.2, thanks to their eye-catching displays. Meanwhile, the value of Shinji Kagawa (14.1m), Xabi Alonso (13.1m), Ousmane Dembele and John Anthony Brooks (both 12.1m), to name but a few, has gone up by 0.1. Whether you wait for these players’ prices to drop again, or sign them up before their value rises any higher, depends on your own requirements!

Potential bargains on offer

Perhaps more interesting, however, are the stars whose value has dropped over the weekend. Why? Because some of the league’s biggest names are now available at cheaper prices.

Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez (14.9m), Salomon Kalou (13.9m), Mario Gomez (11.9m) and Alfred Finnbogason (7.9m), for example, are certain to feature prominently for their respective clubs after the international break, and if you had an extra 0.2 or 0.3 million to spare after picking your original squad, you might want to snap them up now while the going’s good!

It is also worth keeping a close eye on the likes of Marco Reus, Douglas Costa (both 14.9m) and Kingsley Coman (12.9m), who are currently sidelined through injury. Reus, for example, is only due to return towards the end of September, by which time his value might have dropped even further. If he hits the ground running on his return from injury, you’ll have a pretty good bargain on your hands! Keep an eye out for confirmation of these players’ comeback dates and choose your moment wisely!

I highly recommend checking the updated player values first thing after every matchday (after you've checked your points tally, obviously). If you miss out on a player you could have afforded to sign, you'll only have yourself to blame!